NASA Bolden going?

NASA Bolden going?

NASA Bolden going?

On Universe Today I see that NBC is reporting that NASA may have a new Administrator as soon as Monday: Charles Bolden, a Shuttle astronaut who flew on the mission that first deployed Hubble in 1990.

NASA has been without a permanent director for months, since Mike Griffin stepped down and Christopher Scolese was named Acting Administrator. NASA needs a permanent chief; it must make long-term decisions, and make them soon. I've been fretting about how much Obama really cares about NASA; he picked a dog for his family before a top dog for NASA. If this rumor about Bolden is true, I'll be glad to see someone picked, though the fact that it took this long still concerns me. Bolden seems like a good choice; he has a history with NASA, has flown many times, and has command experience in the military. Will this make him a good Administrator? Hard to say.

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For the moment, I won't worry about it too much; when it comes to things like this I'm a wait-and-see guy. If and when he's chosen, we'll see what people with real experience with NASA management have to say. Stay Tuned.

Phil Plait writes Slate’s Bad Astronomy blog and is an astronomer, public speaker, science evangelizer, and author of Death From the Skies!